Side Pannel
Mexican Cooking Tips (2 of 6)
Mexican Cooking Tips (2 of 6)
- Recipe Submitted by ADMIN on 09/26/2007
Category: Cheese, Mexican
Ingredients List
- Dictionary of MEXICAN Cookin
- (This is part 2 of 6)
Directions
CHILI: Chilies are native to the Americas. They have been known in North
America for some time but are said to have traveled north by a circuitous
route; apparently they found their way from Mexico to the Western world
with Christopher Columbus, then to the East and finally back to North
America. New strains of chilies are developed frequently, bred for
hardiness, sweetness, hotness and so forth. But chilies are full of
surprises; two chilies picked from the same plant may vary widely in
hotness. To quench the fire of a too-spicy mouthful, do not reach for a
water glass. Water will only spread the capsaicin (the compound that our
tongues register as "hot") around.
Instead, take a large mouthful of something starchy; corn chips, beans,
bread or rice. Sometimes finding fresh chilies is difficult.
This probably isn't a question of distribution, but of perishability.
Canned and dried chilies are usually available. The Following is a short
list of peppers and what they are.
TYPES OF PEPPERS:
ANAHEIM CHILIES: (California Green Chilies) are slim between five and
eight inches long and of various light shades of green. these mildly hot
chilies are sometimes twisted in appearance. They are occasionally
stuffed, but their flesh is thin and more fragile than that of the poblano
chilies. The Anaheims cultivated in New Mexico where the name is Chili
Verdeare reputedly hotter. A ripe red Anaheim is sometimes known as a
chili Colorado. Anaheim chilies are dried and tied in wreathes (ristras)
and ground and blended in commercial chili powder mixtures. They may be
purchased in cans as "mild green chilies". These chilies were named after
the town that at the turn of the century, was the site of a chili cannery.
ANCHO refers to a ripened, dried poblano chili.
CASCABEL CHILIES: True ones are scarcer than hens' teeth in most parts
of the United States. Sometimes dried Anaheim Chilies are labeled
"cascabel," but they are very different from the authentic item. Fresh
cascabel chilies are hot and have a distinctive flavor. They are round and
1 1/2 inches in diameter. Dried, the cascabel chili has a nutlike flavor.
CAYENNE CHILIES: are thin and tapered, three to seven inches long. Dark
green (unripe) or bright red (ripe), the cayenne is incendiary and well
known to Asian kitchens. The red ones are dried and ground to make cayenne
pepper ("ground red pepper"). This product adds heat and just a little
chili flavor.
CHIPOTLE CHILIES: are smoked, dried Jalapenos with a very wrinkled
appearance. Fresh jalapenos are vibrant green but they turn brown when
smoked. Chipotles can be purchased loose (dry) or canned in Adobo sauce.
The canned variety is especially convenient as it saves having to soak and
soften them.
GUAJILLO CHILIES: (Mirasol Chilies) have a vegetal flavor that shines
even though the drying process. Guajillos are orange-red, skinny and about
two to three inches long.
JALAPENO CHILIES: range from hot to very hot. They are dark green, fat
and about two to three inches long with a characteristically rounded tip.
Watch out for the little ones, which are the hottest. Jalapenos ripen to
red. Use them fresh or pickled.
PASILLA CHILIES: are hot and brown (almost black when dried, which is
how they are commonly found.) They have a dusky flavor.
POBLANO: is the chili most frequently used for CHILIES RELLANOS. It is
a suave dark green and ranges from mild to hot. Shaped like a long bell
pepper, the poblano has a nice shape for stuffing.
RED PEPPER FLAKES: are just that; flaked, dried ripe chilies. Most red
pepper flake mixtures are quite hot.
SERRANO CHILIES: are a sort of middling green, developing to brilliant
red when ripe. Extremely hot (as hot as any chili), this chili is usually
shorter and thinner than the jalapeno.
America for some time but are said to have traveled north by a circuitous
route; apparently they found their way from Mexico to the Western world
with Christopher Columbus, then to the East and finally back to North
America. New strains of chilies are developed frequently, bred for
hardiness, sweetness, hotness and so forth. But chilies are full of
surprises; two chilies picked from the same plant may vary widely in
hotness. To quench the fire of a too-spicy mouthful, do not reach for a
water glass. Water will only spread the capsaicin (the compound that our
tongues register as "hot") around.
Instead, take a large mouthful of something starchy; corn chips, beans,
bread or rice. Sometimes finding fresh chilies is difficult.
This probably isn't a question of distribution, but of perishability.
Canned and dried chilies are usually available. The Following is a short
list of peppers and what they are.
TYPES OF PEPPERS:
ANAHEIM CHILIES: (California Green Chilies) are slim between five and
eight inches long and of various light shades of green. these mildly hot
chilies are sometimes twisted in appearance. They are occasionally
stuffed, but their flesh is thin and more fragile than that of the poblano
chilies. The Anaheims cultivated in New Mexico where the name is Chili
Verdeare reputedly hotter. A ripe red Anaheim is sometimes known as a
chili Colorado. Anaheim chilies are dried and tied in wreathes (ristras)
and ground and blended in commercial chili powder mixtures. They may be
purchased in cans as "mild green chilies". These chilies were named after
the town that at the turn of the century, was the site of a chili cannery.
ANCHO refers to a ripened, dried poblano chili.
CASCABEL CHILIES: True ones are scarcer than hens' teeth in most parts
of the United States. Sometimes dried Anaheim Chilies are labeled
"cascabel," but they are very different from the authentic item. Fresh
cascabel chilies are hot and have a distinctive flavor. They are round and
1 1/2 inches in diameter. Dried, the cascabel chili has a nutlike flavor.
CAYENNE CHILIES: are thin and tapered, three to seven inches long. Dark
green (unripe) or bright red (ripe), the cayenne is incendiary and well
known to Asian kitchens. The red ones are dried and ground to make cayenne
pepper ("ground red pepper"). This product adds heat and just a little
chili flavor.
CHIPOTLE CHILIES: are smoked, dried Jalapenos with a very wrinkled
appearance. Fresh jalapenos are vibrant green but they turn brown when
smoked. Chipotles can be purchased loose (dry) or canned in Adobo sauce.
The canned variety is especially convenient as it saves having to soak and
soften them.
GUAJILLO CHILIES: (Mirasol Chilies) have a vegetal flavor that shines
even though the drying process. Guajillos are orange-red, skinny and about
two to three inches long.
JALAPENO CHILIES: range from hot to very hot. They are dark green, fat
and about two to three inches long with a characteristically rounded tip.
Watch out for the little ones, which are the hottest. Jalapenos ripen to
red. Use them fresh or pickled.
PASILLA CHILIES: are hot and brown (almost black when dried, which is
how they are commonly found.) They have a dusky flavor.
POBLANO: is the chili most frequently used for CHILIES RELLANOS. It is
a suave dark green and ranges from mild to hot. Shaped like a long bell
pepper, the poblano has a nice shape for stuffing.
RED PEPPER FLAKES: are just that; flaked, dried ripe chilies. Most red
pepper flake mixtures are quite hot.
SERRANO CHILIES: are a sort of middling green, developing to brilliant
red when ripe. Extremely hot (as hot as any chili), this chili is usually
shorter and thinner than the jalapeno.
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